First Light
by itakethewords
Summary: What if you got caught in a game you didn't know was all around you? Could you get out without hurting the ones you love most. Life is just a game and if you're not prepared, game over...AUish. Temporary Hiatus.
1. Preface

**First Light  
**by unfailingtwilight

**Preface**

I never thought I would be looking death in the face. At least, not like this.

I always thought those scenarios where people die heroically for loved ones were phony and cheesy. Never did I think I would be willing to die for someone, someone I hardly knew, yet loved so much. But, if I had to die young, at least it was for a good cause, right? It could even be thought of as noble. And here I was, staring into the barrel of gun, just to make sure he was kept safe.

I watched as the Tracker lit his cigarette with one hand, never letting the one with the gun leave its position inches from my face. His eyes met mine and he grinned, motioning to the clock on the wall with his head. I looked and whimpered slightly. He chuckled lightly and took a long drag from the cigarette, tossing it aside. "Let's play a game," he whispered, taking the gun from my face.

I closed my eyes in defeat. It was three thirty-three.

My time of death.


	2. First Sight

1. First Sight

My father was driving me to the airport in his cruiser, the windows down, radio turned up to avoid conversation. The weather was a perfect seventy-eight, cool winds would occasionally blow in the car and neither of us were saying a word. Charlie kept his eyes on the road while he would sporadically try to start a half-hearted conversation with me, failing along with his nerve, and I was sullenly glaring out the window, staring hard at the green foliage of Washington state.

"Bells, don't be like that." I shifted my eyes to the left and saw my father doing the same towards me.

"Like what?"

He sighed. "Pouty, stubborn. Take your pick."

It grew quiet again as we both let his words sink in. I knew he was right. After all, I was seventeen, nearly grown, and sulking like a four-year-old who was denied dessert. Except, in this case, I was being denied my father.

"I'm not pouting, I'm...thinking," I said halfheartedly. Charlie chuckled next to me.

"I just don't understand, Bella. You've been fine with this arrangement for the past four months, you knew it was coming. So why are you resisting _now_? Your mom wants some time with you, in her home, before you go off to college. We all think it would be a good idea for you to get to know Phil, too."

I cringed at the mention of Phil, my mother's new husband. I could tell by the hitch in my father's voice that he wasn't keen on the new man either. Then again, he was still hung up on Reneé and I just didn't like the thought of someone new barging their way into my life. I was a creature of habit.

I tried to explain myself in the short amount of time left we had together, internally panicking as we pulling into the airport of Port Angeles. "Dad, I'm not trying to be difficult, or anything. And I know I've been saying I want to do this," Charlie glanced at me sharply as he pulled one of my suitcases out of the cruiser trunk, startled.

Quickly, I added, "And I _do_! I do. But, I guess it's just nerves and stuff. Plus, I don't want to leave you." I heaved my carry-on over my shoulder and gripped my plane ticket tightly, turning away from Charlie so that we could both avoid sentimental stumbling. I heard him fumble with the last of my luggage, muttering a curse.

I turned slightly, watching Charlie scramble to repack the few shoes that had fallen from the suitcase he had dropped and grew sad. How could I possibly leave my father? I mean, no, he wasn't scatterbrained like my mother. He knew when he was low on gas for the car, he knew when to get up for work and when to pay the bills. But the man barely knew how to cook anything other than eggs and bacon; never did laundry more than twice a month, stretching everything out as long as he could until it was deemed unwearable by his keen sense of smell and the town deputy, and could keep the house a mess until he had to dig a path through the discarded trash. I had learned at an early age not to leave him alone for more than a week. At times, though, I had to admit I was the parent more often in our relationship. Such confidence I had in my adoring father.

Now my mother...I hadn't seen her since her marriage four months ago, back in June. I could honestly say that was the longest stretch of time I had not seen my mother. I would usually take the trip to Phoenix every other month for one week to visit her, to make sure she was still alive, was paying the bills and had her bank accounts in manageable order. My mother was obviously the teen and I the parent in our relationship. I loved my mother dearly, and had no problems with Phil, even if he was a little young, but I just wasn't sure if I could handle a big change in such a sort amount of time. True, I had all summer to prepare, to say my goodbyes to Forks and my best friend Angela. But the whole time, I had been shoving the inevitable to the back of my mind, to think about on a later date. But now that date was today and the most time I would get to think were the plane rides from Port Angeles to Seattle, then on to Phoenix. I was an internal mess.

"Bells? You okay?" Charlie walked up in front of me, breaking me out of my train of thought. I shook my head slightly, getting rid of my worried thoughts and smiled.

"Yup. I'm fine. Are we all set? I still have to go through security." Charlie nodded and lead the way, dragging two of my suitcases behind him, leaving me the third, and smallest. My shoulders sagged slightly when I saw this. My father meant well, but this suitcase held most of my books and was definitely the heaviest. Sighing, I took hold of the handle and trudged forward, leaving behind the Chief's cruiser.

"Bella, if you want to come home, just tell your mother and call me and we'll have you on the first flight back home, okay?"

"Daaaadd..."

"I'm just saying," he held up his hands in defense, smiling slightly. "Seriously, Bells, I'll miss you. Let me know when you get to Reneé, okay?" I could tell the chief was starting to get choked up, and I bit my lip.

"Dad..."

We gave each other a long hug, the most emotion we'd shown each other since we found out Reneé was getting married last January, and pulled away slowly. I turned to go through the gate, but my father's hand caught me. I looked at him curiously.

"I got you a going away gift. Take it," Charlie said gruffly as he pressed a wrapped box in my hand. It fit nicely into the palm of my hand I looked down at it, perplexed at what he could have gotten me. "Just don't open it until you've gotten to Seattle, okay?"

"Charlie..." He gave me a look, the look that said 'Don't call me Charlie', but said nothing. "I love you, too, Dad."

I stumbled off the plane at the Sea-Tac airport, looking for a spot to wait out my half-hour layover, around four that afternoon. One hour down, five more to go. I was sitting down in a café chair with an overpriced bottle of water and a wilted salad when I remembered the box that Charlie had given me. I quickly pulled it from my carry-on and carefully unwrapped the pretty ruby paper. I was met by a nondescript white box, the only detail being a set of twenty-eight numbers and letters in the bottom right corner. Confused, I opened the box and shook my head in surprise. A tiny claret red cell phone was nestled in a mass of tissue paper and a small note on the kitchen stationary from back home. I picked the note up first, taking care to make sure my fingers avoided touching the phone.

Bella,

You know you need one. Just take it. I will take care of the bill. I hope I got you a color you like.

Love, Dad.

I stared at the piece of technology for what must have been ten minutes, afraid it was a joke. I had never really been given a reason to need a cell phone, but it did seem like a good idea to have one, going into a big city like Phoenix. I smiled at my father's practical thinking as I picked up the phone to examine it.

Charlie had done a fairly good job picking out the color, though I wouldn't have put too much thought into it. The phone itself had a small camera, ready to take minuscule photos, it flipped open to reveal a smart, crystal clear screen and a light-up keypad. I blinked in surprise when I pushed the 'on' button and saw that the background was a slightly fuzzy picture of both me and Charlie. He had obviously taken a picture of our picture to First Beach this summer that sat in the living room.

I had to admit, I was touched. Charlie was really worried about me going to such a big city and wanted me to have a fighting chance in case my klutziness claimed me. He had even offered to pay the bill. I bit my lip to fight off tears and decided to call him right then with the phone.

I dialed and listened to the monotone ringing, waiting with impatience. Charlie finally answered on the fifth ring.

"Hello?" I heard the sound of keys in the background.

"Dad, thank you."

"Oh," Charlie sounded surprised slightly, then continued, embarrassed. "It was nothing, Bells. Thought you should have one. Do you like the color?"

"I love it, you know I do. What possessed you into getting it?"

"It was Phil's idea, really. He suggested it to me and I agreed. Though he didn't like the thought of me paying the bill..." Overhead, I heard the first boarding call for my flight to Phoenix, so I cut him short.

"Dad, I'll call you in Phoenix, okay? I've got to start boarding the plane now." I started gathering my things while trying to balance the phone in one hand and my water in the other. I shifted my head slightly and watched in horror as the phone slipped from the niche of my head and shoulder and started tumbling towards the floor.

I reached out a hand to try and stop it, at the same time dropping my water. I was past the point of caring for the water, just as long as I didn't break the phone I hadn't even had for more than a day. Before my fingers could even get close, another set of tan fingers snatched the phone inches from the ground. I stared for a moment at the place where my phone just was, then looked up to the owner of the rescuing fingers.

"I think I got it in time, don't you?" My eyes met with a pair of smiling dark blue ones. I blinked twice, then took in the boy as a whole. I quickly assessed that he was maybe nineteen or twenty, built sturdy with curly brown hair and a warm smile.

"Uh, y-yes, thanks. Gravity and I don't get along very well," I blushed and took the small phone from his proffered hand. He smiled wider and took my hand in his, phone sandwiched between, and shook it politely.

"Glad to help. I'm-"

"Emmett!" We both turned and saw a tall blond glaring in our direction, hands on her hips and lips pursed, several yards away.

"Uh, oh," he muttered, rolling his eyes. "Nice to meet you..." He looked at me expectantly, eyes darting between me and the blond.

"Bella."

"Right, Bella. Well, I've got to go before Rose drags me away." Emmett winked and jogged away.

I watched as he ran to the girl, Rose, and handed her the bottled water he had obviously gotten her in the very waiting area I was sitting in, and had to stifle a laugh as she started yelling at him for something and he pitifully defended himself. They both walked over to a group of five that was waiting for them at a terminal, the two oldest of the group, looking impatient. I sure hoped they weren't their parents, because they didn't look a day over thirty. They listened disapprovingly as Emmett and Rose explained what took them so long. The small, petite girl ignored them completely as she talked with a lean, blond boy who looked ill, and the mismatched fifth of the group, a bronze-haired boy, stood off to the side, staring into space, eyes closed. Slowly, he turned to listen to Emmett, then to my direction. I watched the group from the corner of my eye as I collected my forgotten water and my bag, pocketing the phone. I absentmindedly admitted to myself that the lone boy was good looking, but way out of my grasp. I started walking out of the waiting area, keeping the boy in my sight, and stopped when I saw him follow me with his eyes. His met mine and he frowned, eyes narrowed. I looked away quickly and speed walked to my own terminal, one of the last in line for my flight.

As I handed the attendant my ticket, I put Emmett and the group out of my head. So what if he was frowning at me from afar? Didn't mean he knew me and didn't like me, right? That beautiful, bronze-haired teen didn't know me from Eve and I wasn't about to let him get the better of me. I decided that the moment I found my seat, I would disappear in a book I had thought to keep in my carry-on and not come out until the plane touched down in Phoenix.

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Please Review! More coming soon!

3 unfailingtwilight


	3. Open Book

_Authoress Note: Sorry I haven't updated. I am, among many things, lazy and very busy. I work two jobs and go to college full time, so my internet time is sort of limited. But enough of my lame excuses, on with the story!  
Just as a random note, if anyone seems to have issues with the way I portray some of the characters' personalities, get over it. Please? This fic is an AUish one and so, at times, when I am rearranging the plot to get rid of the vampire element and such, things change. But I am doing my best to _try_ and stay true to their original personalities._

_Anyway, here is Chapter two, without further delay, promise!

* * *

_

**2. Open Book**

"Oh, Bella! I've missed you so much!"

"Mom, you've been saying that all day now. I remembered the first time. Don't worry, the feeling is mutual." I smiled from my seat across from her at the café we were having breakfast at, ignoring the masses of people around us. Truth be told, I was glad to be with her, since I was getting a little claustrophobic in the crush of people. If I had been by myself, I would have screamed aloud by now.

Renée placed her coffee cup on the table and looked at me. I squirmed in my seat a little, knowing she was analyzing my feelings. I had forgotten how she had that extra parental mother sense that Charlie didn't. "What's wrong, Bella?"

I forced myself to keep my eyes on the table as I answered. "Nothing. I mean, obviously a little of_ something_ since I'm getting used to this, but other than that, nothing important."

"It's more than that."

I looked up, startled. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

Renée blinked, unconvinced. "Hmm. Well, you know where I live if you wanna talk."

I smiled teasingly, "It couldn't possibly be down the hall from me, could it?"

"There's my Bella!" my mother cheered. "Are you going to be ready to go to school tomorrow? Perfect way to start new is on a Monday, I think."

I frowned, unable to hide my lack of enthusiasm. "I guess. Better to get it over with." I dreaded having to surround myself with nameless, faceless kids all day, five days a week. The comfort of the small Forks High School was never so inviting. Hopefully I would be able to blend in with the crowd and no one would take notice of my arrival. My fears weren't as big as they had been last night; I had cried out my anxiety and insecurity into the early morning hours, using my pillow as a silencer.

"That's the spirit, honey," Renée said distractedly. She had begun looking in her purse for her cell phone, which was ringing. I shrugged my shoulders in defeat, knowing that if my mother's phone was ringing, she would be distracted with the caller for a while.

"Bella! Renée!"

I turned to the right and saw Phil walking towards our table, making his way through the crush of people. I waved half-heartedly as he came up to our table and sat in the spare chair.

"Hey."

"Who's your mother talking to?" Phil reached across the table for Renée's forgotten piece of toast and bit into it. I shrugged in response. "Well, let's hope she hurries..." I nodded in unspoken agreement, pushing around the remnants of my food on my plate.

It wasn't that I was necessarily shy around Phil, or that I had any kind of problem with him or being around him, it was just that he was new. I always did fine when it came to change and all, but all of this at once was one big shift in my comfort zone. Needless to say, I was coping well enough, but it would be a matter of time before something made me snap. I feared that day.

"How are you doing, Bella? You like Phoenix okay, right?" Phil looked at me with a smile, covering the wait for Renée and trying to fill in the 'father' role he now had an obligation to play simultaneously. I had to admit, he got points for trying.

"It's alright, I suppose. I'm just used to being here for only a week or two at a time, not permanently. The heat, though, I don't think I will ever get used to."

Phil nodded in understanding. "The heat _is_ something, but it's nice after a while." His voice drifted into silence, one that both of us were very much aware of. I went to speak, but my mother cut in, done with her phone call.

"Phil! When did you get here?" Renée leaned over and gave him a peck on the cheek. I raised a brow in quiet surprise. My mother was never one for public displays of affection, at least, not until recently.

"Just a few minutes ago. Bella and me talked while we waited for you to finish up." He dusted the crumbs from his hands and gave Renée a small smile. Renée grinned wide, obviously pleased.

"Good, good. Guess what?" My mother looked at me as she spoke, but it was Phil who answered her rhetorical question. "I got the job!"

I sat, clueless, as Phil hugged my mother tight, giving her congratulations and told her how he knew she could do it. I blinked as my mother flushed a bright pink in embarrassment at the scene they were creating and in pleasure for her success. After a moment, I cleared my throat, ready to be thrown into the loop. Renée looked at me, the realization of my cluelessness dawning on her at last. "Oh, Bella! I forgot to tell you!"

"Wha-," I stopped, seeing the look of joy on Renée's face. She seemed genuinely happy for whatever this job was. "What kind of job?" God forbid she decide she wants to work as a teacher as my new school. I gave a silent prayer to the powers that be as she answered.

"I got a job as a kindergarten teacher at the school down the street from the house!" Renée grabbed my hand in both of hers. "I was getting bored at home and found out that one of the teachers was expecting a baby. She's leaving next week and I'll be replacing her until she comes back. That is, if she wants to come back. Isn't this great?"

Renée gave me a huge smile, and despite my doubts (what, with Renée being so flaky and easily bored), I smiled with her and Phil.

------

Later, we had all gone down as a _family_ to get me some more permeable clothes for the humid, arid weather of Arizona. Most of my clothes from home, from Forks, were definitely winter clothes and thus only wearable in the dead of winter. But for now, it was early October, and still a dry heat, so we made the trek to the huge mall. While we were there, I had constantly fretted with Renée, telling her to go bargain price with everything, but she said that this was part of my (late) birthday present and a house-warming gift. I sighed dejectedly, and shook my head. At one point, I thought I had seen Phil's face blanch at the way my mother barely glanced at the price tags.

Even a minor league ball player had his spending limits, it seemed.

Near late afternoon, Phil ducked out of parental duty, saying he had a team meeting to attend. When I turned to seem him leave, he winked, waving goodbye at me. My mother barely noticed, too busy scanning the rotating browsers full of romance novels in the bookstore we were looking in. I was walking past the manga shelf, turning to the classics, when I saw movement from the corner of my eye.

I turned and saw a head of bronze leave the same aisle. I took a few steps toward the boy, but when I reached a decent spot to catch a glance, he was gone, walking to the front of the store. When I started to follow him, a body stepped in front of me, cutting my view of the bronze-headed boy and frustrating me to no end. I craned my neck slightly to see who was in my way and saw it was Renée, holding three books in her hands.

"Bella, which one sounds like a better read? _Paralyzer_, _Love At First Fight_, or _The Dating Game_? I can't decide..." Renée's voice faded when she noticed my line of sight. She turned slightly, looking for what had my interest and hummed with some sort of motherly know-it-all-ness.

"What?" I asked, cocking a brow at her smug look.

"Nothing…"

"Mom…"

"Nothing. I know which book I want. The front cover's telling me all I need to know."


	4. Treading WaterThe Lost Art

3. Treading Water—The Lost Art

Being on a crowded public bus was not my favorite way to travel in Phoenix. This had been made evident when I rode it for my first day of school. Even for seven in the morning, the bus was crowded, noisy, and chaotic. Renée had promised me that this was a one time thing; with her having to meet with the headmaster of the kindergarten and Phil having a doctor's appointment. She had promised I would have a car to drive by the end of the week. As I risked glancing at the man leering at me across the isle, I prayed it would be soon, otherwise I was going to have to invest in either jujitsu or pepper spray, aerosol bottle being the most likely option, as I had no coordination whatsoever.

I nearly fell on my face as we came to the stop a block from West Phoenix High School. Barely glancing back, I basically power-walked off the bus and joined the faceless mob that was heading towards the school. Already, I felt like I was getting the wish I had asked of myself last night in bed, to be invisible. No one looked at me for more than a moment, eyes glancing right over me and going on to the next person who walked by. But as I walked into the central office, I felt eyes staring at my back, making my skin prickle a little. I turned my head and looked, but the two girls coming in behind me were busy gossiping loudly with each other and the door was closing too quickly for me to glance out into the hall.

"Hmm," I muttered to myself and turned back to woman at the counter, who was busy sorting through papers. The barely looked older than me, which surprised me. The secretary back in Forks had been an older, plump woman with frizzy red hair. "Excuse me?"

The woman looked up, startled. She blinked her luminous green eyes and shakily brushed back her straight blond hair. She settled her busy hands and took a deep breath. "What can I do for you?"

"Uh, I'm Isabella Swan. I registered here a few days ago. I need my schedule..." For a minute, the secretary looked panicked, but she smiled and perked up a bit.

"Right...You and your mother came in here a few days ago." I nodded. "Right...right...Just let me find it here..." She walked off, leaving me standing alone. As I waited, I looked around my surroundings, taking in the office, which was the only place in the school I found myself confidently able to find. I saw that off to the side, nearly shoved behind a cluster of sports schedules, was the secretary's nameplate, which read Ms. Masen. Another secretary sat further in the office, typing away furiously at a computer, answering calls as they came. She fit the 'secretary' stereotype perfectly: matronly, old, plump, and was organized at her station. "Got it!"

Ms. Masen shouted as she came back around the corner, startling the second secretary slightly. One man peaked his head from a doorway in the hallway near the back of the office to see what the noise was. When he saw the blond secretary sit, he just shook his head and disappeared into the back room again. "Let's take a look, huh?" She smacked the paper down on the counter, clearing a small space for the two of us to look at the small square of paper. I read the paper with butterflies in my stomach.

_Isabella M. Swan_

_7:55-8:55: Applied Spanish in Conversations 2 Sra. Ramirez_

_9:00-10:05: Geometry 3 Mr. Lea_

_10:10-11:15: Advanced Biology Ms. Colbert_

_11:20-11:50: LUNCH A_

_11:55-12:50: World History 2 Mr. Goldstein_

_12:55-1:35: Study Hall Mrs. Tailor/Mr. Schmidt_

_1:40-2:35: Contemporary Literature Ms. Miller_

_2:40-3:35: Gym (Track and Field Sports) Mr. Lopez_

"What's wrong, Miss Swan?" I looked up to see Ms. Masen's doe-like green eyes watching me in concern.

I swallowed, fighting back worry. "Oh, nothing. I'm just not a fan of gym." I chuckled. "I am not very graceful." That was putting it lightly. Heaven forbid someone ask me to run a track or play soccer. "By the way, you can just call me Bella."

She smiled in understanding. "Well, Bella, if you could just call me Serena, then we'd all be a little happier." I nodded, smiling. "I'd give you a tour of the school, be your shadow and all that, but as you can see, I have a lot of work to do here." She trailed off, then picked up steam again. "This is what happens when I go on vacation and leave that old—"

"Serena," muttered the older woman in the room, not taking her eyes off of the computer.

"Sorry, sorry." Serena looked at me guiltily. "It's just that, the woman who comes in when Mrs. Green or I leave never organizes anything. Just leaves it here for me to deal with when I come back. Normally I don't mind if it's just for a day, but really!" Mrs. Green nodded in agreement silently. "Anyway. I have arranged for someone to shadow you for the day. They should be here any moment now. I had them check in with all of their teachers to let them know..." I sat in one of the empty chairs, feeling a little dizzy. I was already attracting gossip—staff gossip, for crying out loud. I shuddered to hear what nonsense I would be privileged to as the 'new girl' throughout the day. I had to wait another ten minutes for my guide. And in between that time, I saw two boys shuffle in—one bruised and holding his hand to his chest protectively and the other trying to stop their nose from bleeding everywhere—and a group of blue and silver-clad cheerleaders come in with a giant banner, requesting tape and ladders to hang the sign near the gym. I peaked at the sign as they tried to roll it up and take it from the office again and felt my eyes go wide. _Homecoming_ ? I asked myself.

I suppressed a shudder just in time, as my guide came in the office. A slight girl, a redhead, came straight to me and held out her hand. I took it and shook, a little confused. "Isabella Swan?" she asked in a brisk tone as I stood. I nodded. "I am Cat. Cat Tailor." We chatted for a moment and I waited as Serena told Cat what my schedule was.

"So, where are you from?" Cat walked beside me as we traveled down the back end of the school. Just by looking at her, I knew she was curious as to why I would even attempt to live in a valley of sunlight while being so pale. Then again, looking at her sensitive redhead skin pallor, I felt reassured that I wouldn't have to bake my skin to survive.

"Forks, Washington. Sunless capitol of the world," I joked. Cat gave a short bark of a laugh.

"Heh, you're all right. I_ guess_ we can be friends." I stopped walking and stared at her. When she noticed that I wasn't walking with her, she stopped and backed up to me. "What's wrong?" A small frown appeared on her lips.

"I wasn't friend-fishing..." I started, but got cut off.

"Yeah, yeah. I know. You look like someone who couldn't be conniving or lie to save your life." She rolled her eyes at my pout. "I made up my mind when I found out I had to do this that if I liked you off the bat, I would be your friend." Cat gave me an appraising look, as if looking over merchandise. "Then again, if you'd rather be friendless on your first day..."

"No!" I blushed at my outburst, but quickly regained my composure. "No. I was just, startled, I guess." I held out my hand. "Friends, Cat?"

Cat pretended to think it over, but a sly smile was on her face. "Friends, Isabella."

"Bella." I corrected her automatically. We continued walking and I listened to all the advice that Cat deigned to share with me.

"So, I will meet you after all your classes. Don't worry if I take a few minutes—the halls are totally clogged with people. Not to mention you have the 'New Girl' card to play with the teachers. We'll do it today and tomorrow. And you've lucked out because we have a few classes together."

I perked up a bit. At least I would know someone. "Which ones?"

"Advanced Biology, A Lunch, Study Hall and Lit. About half of them, I guess."

We stopped outside of a door painted navy blue. I looked at it quizzically.

"Their painting stuff to infuse more 'school spirit'," Cat said, noticing my look of distaste. "This is room 118. Senora Ramirez's Conversational Spanish. I'll meet you here at nine." She started down the hall we came from.

I nervously knocked on the door, hoping no one would answer. I nearly gulped when I heard the teacher answer back. The door opened, the nob locked from the outside, and a woman who stood nearly half a foot shorter than my own five foot four. She had a mass of curly brown hair that was held up by a clip and her skin was the color of creamed mocha.

"Si?"

"Uh. I'm Bella Swan. The new student," I clarified when she looked at me blankly. Recognition sparked in her eyes and she switched to English.

"Oh, right. Come on in." She opened the door wider and let me in, closing the door behind me. She shooed me to the only open seat, right in the middle of the mob of my classmates, the desk already having a book perched on the edge. I breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't make me stand in front of everyone. Ramirez merely handed me a few pieces of paper and went on teaching. I liked her already. After class she explained a few points on the syllabus and sent me on my way, which was the same time that Cat had shown up.

"What class did you just come from?" I asked her, shoving my new (to me) Spanish book in my bag along with the papers.

"Français trois," she answered in an accent. She pointed to a gaudy silver door just feet from my Spanish room. "Then again, that isn't how you would actually say it," she amended, switching back to our native tongue.

"So where are we going now?"

"I am taking the two of us upstairs to the math wing. I have Algebra and you have...what?"

"Uh, Geo, I think." I had to glance at my schedule.

Cat snapped her fingers. "That's right. Mr. Lea! I am so sorry." She cackled evilly.

"Why?" I dragged out the word, not wanting to really hear a word.

"He is a perv. None of the girls like having him as a teacher. Word of advice, don't wear nice tops or skirts til after his class. You should always carry a sweater or something to wear." She took a glance at me. "Though, I wouldn't worry about passing his class."

I looked down, confused. I thought my outfit was decent. I had on my favorite pair of jeans, a blue pair of tennis shoes and a square necked gray T on. "What?" I asked, exasperated. A few people on the stairs glanced at me as I growled. Cat stifled a laugh.

"You have a chest, Bella." She pointed to me, then to herself. She was rather flat compared to myself. "I barely scrapped by in his class with a C because of two reasons. One, I am curveless. Two, he hates my mother, who is a teacher here."

I swallowed, nervous and braved Geometry for an hour, completely understanding what Cat had been talking about. _She is my new hero_ , I said to myself, waiting outside the half painted door for my new friend and figuratively caped crusader.

At least, with Cat around, I was treading water instead of drowning. She made being new look easy.

**Authoress Note:**

**Sorry I took so long to update. I am working like crazy for my new car... -.-;**

**New update sometime before July, I hope.**

**Please read, enjoy, and review!**

**unfailingtwilight (2008)**


	5. Calm Before The Storm

4. Calm Before The Storm

"So, day one. What did you think?" I was walking out of the girl's locker room, the blush from my cheeks barely faded, when I was accosted by Cat once more.

I shouldered my bag, heavy with books, as I answered. "Eh. Better than I could have hoped for." She nodded in reply. I was just glad she wasn't questioning me too much. I would have to deal with Renée, Phil, and most likely my father when I got home. My only solace was that Charlie might have some sense to give it a few days to interrogate me. He knew how I had to take everything in before passing judgment.

"Good. And here's some more good stuff for your happy basket," I raised a brow at her odd words. I was quickly learning that Cat had her own phrases and analogies for everything. "You won't last long as a topic for gossip around here."

"Wait. I am being gossiped about? Already?" I interrupted. She nodded.

"Yep. Everyone likes something new and shiny to look at. Anyway, I was just in the office and I heard that there's gonna be this big group of new kids coming in on Thursday. Some family of adopted kids with some really nice doctor and his wife."

"Huh," I said in reply. I wasn't too interested in them, seeing as I was too preoccupied with surviving my first week of permanent residency in Phoenix. To change the subject, I said, "I did like your mom. She seemed real laid back for a study hall advisor."

"Yeah," Cat dragged out the word, looking for how to describe her mom. "But I wouldn't piss her off. Man, she's scary. At school, though, she's cool. She's actually the 'media center lady'. Which means she just babysits kids when they go online and helps them work the copier."

We stopped outside the main doors, my eyes quickly tried to adjust to the bright light, watering with the effort. The chances of me investing in a decent pair of sunglasses looked good at this point. I sighed as I looked down the street to the bus stop, already wishing I was home. "You wanna ride?" I looked over to Cat, who was pulling out a set of keys. She looked at me innocently, but I knew she saw the look of disgust when I glanced down the street.

"If it's not out of your way, that'd be great." I smiled genuinely. We walked to her car, which turned out to be a blue-green Camaro. It looked like it was at least ten years old, but it was in decent condition. "Nice car," I commented.

She laughed as we climbed in. "Thanks. I bought it on eBay."

"Seriously?"

"Yep." We pulled out and headed for the main road. "Only two thousand. But it took almost all the money I'd been saving since I was thirteen. So where are we headed?"

"Paradise Valley," I said, adding the street name. She nodded in recognition.

"That's about a mile from me."

The ride was comfortable. Cat made it impossible for awkward silences, but even if there had been a time either of us hadn't talked, I doubted there would have been any uncomfortable moments. She was an honestly good person, who especially reminded me of Angela back home. I felt a pang of guilt as we pulled on to my street. As if I was already replacing my best friend with a convenient body. Cat must have caught the look on my face, because the moment she turned in my driveway, which was curiously empty, she shut off the car and turned to me.

"Did you have a best friend back in Spoons?"

"_Where?_" I looked at her incredulously. "Forks?"

"Isn't that what I said?" She winked. I smiled, despite myself.

"Yeah. I was just thinking about her. Her name's Angela."

Cat nodded in affirmation. "I thought so. The look on your face, you looked as if you were committing a crime." I glanced down sheepishly. "It's okay, you know."

"What is?"

"Making new friends. Angela sure as hell doesn't want you friendless here, right?"

I looked horrified at the thought. Angela was too nice. I doubted she had an evil bone in her body. "No. Of course not."

"And you guys had friends, boyfriends back in Washington, right? She won't be totally alone and she wouldn't want you alone here. You'd wither and dry up before you'd get to visit her."

I paused, thoughtful. "Yeah, she's got Mike and Jessica and everyone..."

"Mike her boyfriend or yours?"

"Neither," I laughed aloud at the thought. "Mike's Jessica's. An acquaintance of ours, Ben, has his eye on her, but Ang is just oblivious to it." A lawnmower started up, startling me. Cat barely glanced at its direction. "Do you want to come in? I'm still not used to the heat..." I glanced back up at the sun, eyes wincing because of the harsh light.

"Sure, sure. Let's roll."

Cat ended up staying until Renée walked in the door, carrying bags of takeout. She seemed a little startled to see the redhead sitting with me in the kitchen, doing homework and talking. But her surprise was quickly swallowed by parental pride. I could almost feel the satisfaction rolling off her. Day one and I had already brought home a friend. I nearly rolled by eyes at the smug look on her face, but Cat beat me to the punch.

"Uh, oh. Gotta go, Bella."

"What?" Both me and Renée exclaimed at the same time. I continued, confused. "Why?"

"Your mom wants to hear all about your first day! Duh!"

Renée sat the food on the counter and turned back to my guest. "You are welcome to stay..."

"Cat."

"...Cat. We have plenty."

"Nah. Thanks though. Better get home anyhow. My mom's probably is getting ready to grill me about how helping Bella went today. She's a little nosy," Cat winked as she whispered the last part. Renée chuckled. It seemed like she approved of my new friend.

Soon after Cat left, Phil walked in the door, looking very proud of himself. My mother and I had already started eating, which didn't seem to surprise him in the least. When he sat down, my mother gave him a friendly peck, which I studiously ignored. They began the ritualistic and stereotypical questions about each other's days, then moved on to me. I told them about Cat, my classes and any information that seemed vital for a first day experience. Honestly, I just felt like going up to my room and curling up with an Austen book, or maybe some Shakespeare. Instead, I settled for telling them I hadn't finished all of my homework and went up to my room to finish on the computer.

My new (kind of) room was a change from my old one back in Forks. Where the one in Forks held memories of my infancy, down to the rocking chair and the quilt on my bed (which had traveled with me to Phoenix). This room held only enough memories of sporadic visits from childhood. There was the bed that faced the north. Back when I was ten, I thought the bed was huge, but it fit nicely now. A cherry desk that had inhabited the room longer than myself sat against the east wall, now adorned with a computer. While not top-of-the-line, it was definitely an improvement over my technological accessibility back home. A small cushion sat on the window seat, which had once been bare wood underneath the large bay window. Even though it was the only window in the room, it brought plenty of light in, which pleased me just fine, seeing as the window was directly to the right of my bed, therefore facing east and the sunrise. Opposite of the window was my closet, which was a modest size, but seemed cavernous due to my somewhat still lacking wardrobe. Also to the west was a fat bookshelf that took up the rest of the wall until the door, which was just across the room and to the left of my bed. Just next to the door, on the only available spot of wall left in my room, was a small dresser. The entire room was supposed to be marble-like, white offset with gray and pink. But it had been painted back during one of Renée's stints as an artist, so it looked more like prison gray. How appropriate. I would have to paint it soon to stave off madness, or risk being sent back to Forks in a straitjacket.

I made a beeline for the computer, not used to it warming up so quickly. I clicked on to the Internet with lightening speed and checked my email, perking up instantly seeing that I had several messages waiting for me in my inbox. One was from Angela, one from Jessica and one from an unknown address. I saved that one for last. First came Jessica's, the one I was cautious about.

It was fairly generic, which gave me hope. She'd hopefully be done fishing for gossip in a week or two_..._

_We miss you so much! So tell me what it's like in a big city like Phoenix. How many kids are in your class? Meet any boys giggle?_

_Email me soon, k?_

_Miss ya!_

_Jess_

Angela's was much more to my liking, that is to say, it read well through Spell Check and used complete sentences. There wasn't much going on around Forks, and we only had been separate for less than a week, so there wasn't much to talk about.

_So, is it just me, or did you ever notice how much Ben Cheney was always in our group? I mean, was it always that way or am I just sleep-deprived because of the twins at home? With you gone, he seems to have stepped up to try and hold your mantel as my best friend. Not that you can be replaced, Bella, but he is _extraordinarily_ attentive. I kind of dwarf him, me being five ten and him only five five, but still..._

_Anyway, how is the change going for you? I hope you aren't feeling lost in the crowd yet, because I don't want you drowning in a landlocked state without a buddy..._

Angela's letter concluded with a promise that she'd write once a week, as long as her twin siblings didn't take over her free time. In the pit of my stomach, I felt a warmth that felt oddly curious. It felt like being home, but as if I was all alone at the same time. My eyes prickled and a wave of horror washed over me. I was going to cry any moment. I didn't do emotions very well, like Charlie. Quietly, I shut my door, locking it, and shut the monitor off, muting the harsh glare. I didn't care about the daylight, didn't bother with anything else, mainly because the tears had come and I was becoming undone. The rush of homesickness had finally shown up and it felt horrible. I felt like letting out horrible sobs, ones that would make my throat sore, I wanted to cry in my mother's arms. Instead, I sobbed quietly in my pillow until I was too tired for more waterworks.

When I was done, I flipped onto my back and stared at the ceiling for a while. The feeling after a crying jag always felt kind of nice, as long as I didn't remember the reason why I had been crying. Like I was hollow of anything bad and I had a chance to start over with my emotions. Like the calm and tranquility after a rainstorm. Hopefully I could keep this feeling until I settled in for the long haul.

* * *

_Author Note:  
Sorry, Sorry! I promised an update in July, but honestly **had **no way to update. So I am posting this chapter along with the next one as an apology. And next week I will post __another._

_Unfailingtwilight_


	6. Ice Cold Beginning

5. Ice Cold Beginning

"So you don't mind that you sit all alone at your lab table here? I mean, you end up doing twice as much work than everyone else." Cat was sitting in the usually vacant seat next to me in our advanced biology classroom. It was five minutes until the bell and the room was slowly filling up. Usually, she sat one table back from me, partnered with a boy who was on the swim team—and had obviously swallowed too much chlorine—while I sat front and to the left of the teacher's desk, alone.

I chuckled at her question. "And how much work do _you_ do compared to your partner?"

Cat sniffed. "Less than you, Swan. I make him do grunt work, stuff that can't be messed up." I raised a brow. "Like getting the equipment...and handing in the work...and..." She trailed off sheepishly, realizing the truth. "Damn it. Never mind." The bell rang, silencing the class and sending people like Cat to their seats.

The teacher, Ms. Colbert, began the lesson by collecting the night's assignments and handing out papers with outlines for the next day's test. While I looked over the material, basic stuff, even for an advanced class, there was a knock on the classroom door. Colbert went to the door, not looking surprised. Behind me, Cat kicked my chair. I turned to her and saw her grinning.

"What?" I mouthed. She quickly scribbled on the back of her outline an answer.

_New kids, remember? It's Thursday._

So that was why the entire school had been in a similar frenzy it had been in when I'd arrived. The crop of new kids from the same family were coming today. What a stupid thing to get excited over. And I told Cat so on her paper.

_Nuh uh. There's so much controversy over them. But I can't (and won't) tell. It's not my business._

I just blinked at her. She mouthed, "Mom." I nodded.

_So who's coming to our class?_ I glanced up from our paper to see if Colbert was back from the door, but she was still talking. When I looked back down, Cat had an answer for me.

_The youngest boy. His name is Edward. Edward Cullen. I got a look at the group early this morning and I saw the majority of them, but I'm not sure which one he was._

"We're about to find out," I muttered. Cat nodded enthusiastically.

I turned back in my seat and pretended to glance over the sheet some more. I grimaced internally. Cat had fed me just enough to flare up my human curiosity. Usually I wasn't so involved in other people's business. The door slammed shut, getting my attention and calling the eyes of all my classmates forward to the teacher and the newcomer. Had it really been like that when I came in on Monday? He made it seem so easy, while I had nearly been shaking in my sneakers.

The new boy stood in front of the class and introduced himself. Cat had been right. His name was Edward Cullen. He was seventeen and he had just moved with his adoptive family from Ashland, Wisconsin. He looked to be just over six feet, was slightly pale, but with some healthy color, had the brightest green eyes and had a voice that nearly made me shiver like it was winter. A few girls in the class even let out a collective sigh. Dear lord. And as his eyes scanned over us as he talked, I knew that there was no doubt in my mind, especially when our eyes met, that this bronze-headed boy was the same one who'd glared at me in Port Angeles, who I had spied in the bookstore, and who possibly hated me, if his narrowed eyes were to be believed.

But the suspicious look was gone in less than a second and was replaced with a smile that was obviously dazzling the entire population of the class, guys included. He concluded his speech and the teacher sent him to the only available seat in the room—next to me. I felt Cat nudge my seat, but I ignored her as the class went forward. And just as I was ignoring Cat to the best of my ability, Edward Cullen was ignoring me with the same tenacity. A few times during class, I snuck peaks at him and was internally horrified to see that the muscles in his hands were taught, his body tense. Was I so repulsive that he felt the need to be ready to jump when the bell rang?

None too soon, the bell thankfully rang and class was dismissed. I waited in my seat until the majority of kids had reached the door in order to not trip over anyone and by the time I had stood and had my things in hand, Cat was next to me instead of Edward. He had been long gone, up the moment the bell had rang and halfway to the door with the other kids who were eager to leave.

"So what did you think?"

"Of?" I glared at her as we walked down the hall to our lockers. As we put our books away, she elaborated.

"Of Edward? Duh."

"Fine, I guess. Why?"

Cat appraised me as we continued down the hall, following the masses to the cafeteria. Thankfully, the science wing was close to the lunchroom, so we'd beaten the main crowd. We quickly grabbed trays and rushed around for our favorites before the good stuff was gone. As we paid, I watched her scan the room for something...or someone. I gulped internally when her eyes lit up in triumph. "Cat."

"Huh? Why?"

"No reason. Just curious as to why you were the only one, present company excluded, who didn't swoon over the man."

"One," I said, sitting down, "He's seventeen. That means he isn't a man. He's barely through high school." I bit a fry and gave her a baleful look. "Two, it takes more than a pretty face to make _me_ swoon. I am a little more mature than that, thank god. And three, I think I've seen him before."

Cat paused, spoon full of yogurt halfway to her mouth. "Where?" she demanded.

"At the Port Angeles airport. Him and his family." I gestured to the table she was staring at, which was filled with who I assumed was the Cullen family. Edward was there, along with the lean blond boy and pixie-like girl, and the blond beauty Rose and the brawny Emmett. "One's name is Emmett and the blond girl is Rose, right?"

"Right. But she's Rosalie, not Rose. Her last name is Hale, not Cullen, along with the other blond, his name is Jasper and I guess they're twins. The last girl is Alice."

"So they are related? Some of them?"

Cat glanced once more at them, prompting me to do the same. "Well, there's the Hale twins, then I think Edward, Alice and Emmett are siblings or cousins or something. Related to Mrs. Cullen and the doctor. I guess the two couldn't have kids, so they adopted her sister's, who died, and a few more." The look on my face must have been one of amazement, because Cat responded with, "I know. How nice are they? And the two are only in their late twenties or something."

I played with the remnants of my food, feeling eyes on me the moment I had looked away from the large family. When I looked to Cat, she seemed oblivious to my discomfort, too absorbed in doing her homework for her psych class. I was about to get up and head for my locker when she interrupted me. "Why does he seem to hate you?"

"Hmm?"

She didn't look up from her page, but kept highlighting as she spoke. "Edward. He seemed like he hated having to sit next to you. I wonder why."

"Uh, search me."

Cat slammed her book shut and crammed it under he arm so she could grab her tray. Wordlessly, the two of us dumped our trash and headed out to the hall. We both stopped to our locker, then headed to the back, dimly lit hall of the school. Before we parted, I spoke up.

"I'm not sure, but..."

"But..."

"But when I saw them in Port Angeles, he glared at me then, too."

This seemed to perk her up from her sullen mood. Though she clearly tried not to gossip, Cat also tried not to stay out of the loop. "I wonder why."

I sighed, feeling down from the potential of someone hating me. "Yeah. Odd."

"Cheer up, Swan! We'll get to the bottom of it. See you in study hall."

"That's what I'm afraid of," I muttered, but waved anyway as Cat went in her classroom and I headed to the end of the hall for my own, which was World History.

The downside of being a few minutes early to class was always the free time to think. Thinking was dangerous in my situation. It gave me way too much free space to think of reasons as to why Edward Cullen might hate me. I had never even spoken a word to him, much less he to me. So what gave him the right to think of me the way he did?

I sat quietly through my fourth class of the day, brooding. I was surprised, as the bell rang, that the teacher hadn't called on me during the whole hour, but maybe it had something to do with the possibly malevolent look on my face the entire period. It seemed as if he thought his life was worth more than asking me about Roman economics and the answer I'd have given him.

Cat had apparently gone on ahead to talk to her mother, so I walked alone in the hall towards the study hall, which was closer to the offices in the front of the building. I didn't mind. It gave me several more moments to brood before having to put on a halfway decent mood for Mrs. Tailor. Somehow, all the teachers in the tri-county area seemed to talk and if I so much as sneezed, my mother knew by nightfall. I didn't need my mother hovering over me like a hen, and I didn't want to know what type of reaction she would have if she found out the reason for my sullenness.

True to every past day this week, Cat was in the Media Center, her stuff spread out haphazardly across an entire table, with one space clear for me, and she was with her mom at the front counter. I headed over and dropped my stuff at my seat, then headed over to the two Tailor women.

Cat and her mom looked almost nothing alike. At least, not at first glance. While Cat was a redhead and just as pale as me, her mother was olive-toned and had hair as dark as a raven feather. They both had almond-shaped brown eyes and pert noses with slightly oval-shaped faces and they both met at around five feet, seven inches and were built slight, but sinuous. (Bodies of dancers, I had been told once, as my old ballet teacher had pointed out to me at the other girls in the class. I hadn't been like them, of course.) Her mother obviously had some Asian roots, but that which was obvious in her was more subtle in Cat, who must have taken after her father. And just as Cat was outgoing and lax in everything, Amaya Tailor was shy, but no pushover, quiet but firm.

"Hi, Mrs. Tailor," I said quietly, watching more kids come in for the study hall period. The bell was about a minute away.

"Hi, Bella." She gave me a smile and we exchanged quick pleasantries. I knew this would quickly bore Cat, who would drag us to our seats any second.

"Oh, jeeze. Come on. Let's go sit before she tries to nail me with a tardy because I'm not sitting," drawled Cat. She grabbed my upper arm and guided me to our table. As we sat, I asked,

"So what were you asking for?"

She gave me an affronted look. "Moi? You make it seem like I was demanding or begging or something." I raised a brow, looking up from my geometry homework.

"From the look on your mom's face, it must have been something." I went back to a particularly hard equation as the bell rang and the last stragglers shuffled in. Cat took in a breath to answer, but she stopped as someone sat their stuff on our table, somehow managing a spot that hadn't been covered in all of Cat's things. We both looked to the newcomer.

Alice Cullen.

"Hi. Mind if I sit here today?" I was too dumbfounded to speak, but Cat had no problem.

"I dunno. You plan on getting work done?"

This was a valid point. Unless you could multi-task, there was no point sitting at the same table with Cat and myself. We had perfected the tone that was acceptable to the study hall advisors as long as work got done. Most people gave up after day one, keeping at least two tables away if they wanted to actually do homework. That was why most of the slackers and the others like us had surrounded us, similar to a protective cocoon.

"Maybe. Depends on my mood." Alice smiled and I doubt I would have been able to tell her no with that look if I had regained any of my speech capabilities. Luckily I had trusty Cat.

But all she did was shrug. But as I switched my eyes to her, I picked up on a sneaky glint in her eye. I had never seen that look before, but it sent shivers down my spine. I followed her line of sight and nearly groaned aloud. Across the room, at a computer was her brother, Edward, who was giving his name to Mrs. Tailor, who walked around collecting roll. How was it possible that I had _two_ classes with the only person on Earth who hated me (Lauren back home excluded)?

The three of us settled in and exchanged few words at first. Cat knew when I had math out that I needed a little extra quiet and Alice seemed to be gauging our personalities between her French vocabulary words. After some time, as the level of noise around us picked up some decibels from the other tables, Cat spoke directly to Alice.

"So what is your brother, Edward, like? He was in my Bio class, but didn't speak much."

Alice looked up from her list, face serene. "Edward? He's...Edward, I suppose. I don't think about it too much." But Alice kept going after seeing the look on Cat's face from the lack of information. "He's big in to music, uh, can get moody sometimes if he's angry. He's a really nice boy, though. Especially if you compare him to some."

"How do you mean?" I asked.

Alice's nose scrunched slightly in thought. "I guess, if you compare him to other guys our age, he seems much more mature than his age."

"He's not boring, is he? He doesn't act like he's seventy, right?" Cat asked, shuffling through her own French notes.

Alice laughed quietly. "No. My brother just knows how to act like a gentleman. He can act like he's seventeen if he wants, but he prefers not to, as he says, 'dumb himself down'."

"So you're brother and sister, then?" I asked. I had been curious to the entire group's relationship with each other.

Alice's smile shrank a bit, her eyes gaining a bit of suspicion. "Yes. And Emmett is our half-brother."

"Alice."

Startled, I jumped a bit in my seat. Clearly, Cat was almost as startled as me, but she composed herself better, looking up quickly to the person standing behind Alice. Both Alice and I looked up and the same time, Alice's smile leaving entirely as she saw her brother standing behind her.

"Hi, Edward," she murmured. She blinked twice and looked back to me and Cat. "Have you met Cat and Bella?"

He barely glanced at us before crossing his arms and glaring at his sister again. "Not really. They're in my third hour, though. We need to go to the office." He held up a yellow slip, a clear sign that you had something or someone waiting for you in the office. I myself had received one when Renée dropped off lunch money for me the day before.

I gave a sidelong glance at Cat, who was doing the same to me. Maybe we were thinking the same thing, too: He's as cold as ice. Alice's face lit up a bit with the news. She turned back to the two of us.

"I'd better go. It might be our parents, Carlisle and Esme."

I nodded. "See you around, Alice. Edward." Cat echoed my goodbye. Edward nodded curtly towards us and Alice waved half-heartedly. I looked at my watch and sighed.

"The bell?" asked Cat, noting my sigh.

"Yes. In three." I started packing my things, getting ready for a run to my locker once more. Hopefully we could beat the crowds.

Cat picked up on the time. "Let's see if my mom will let us go now. After all, I'm so eager to hand in my essay on banned books." She grinned cheekily.

"Right. Honestly, who bans _To Kill A Mockingbird_?"

"I was thinking more along the lines of _Harry Potter_, but sure."

* * *

**Another update to make up for my absence. More next week!**

**Unfailingtwilight**


	7. The Doctor's Apprentice

**First Light  
by** _unfailingtwilight  
_**Chapter 7:** The Doctor's Apprentice  
**Disclaimer:** I Don't own any characters who are in the original Twilight saga. Just people like Cat. Any and all Twilight-related things belong to Stephenie Meyer...unfortunately.

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the delay. You all must think I'm a liar. Unfortunately, I've had quite a few bad things happen to me since the last time I updated in, what, August? But I'm not going to go into the grizzly details....Anyway, I'm super sorry and I'm posting two chapters today and another sometime before the end of the month.

* * *

6. The Doctor's Apprentice

"Bella, I don't know what we are going to do with you," Renée look at me with amused exasperation. After school, I had taken a ride once more from Cat. On that ride, we'd stopped at the library to meet up with her boyfriend, Michael, who was due from his brief Young Republicans meeting at any time. There was where I met my official first accident in Phoenix.

We'd been scanning the rows of books and the moment I split from my friend, I met with disaster. I had been too absorbed in the tremendous amount of books to notice the pushcart in my way and by the time I saw it, I was already on it and heading quickly to the ground. My left arm had gotten tangled under the books and the industrial iron. All things considered, I'd actually made little noise. Only Cat, who'd been two rows over, and the young staff member who'd left the cart unattended came to see what the noise had been. I apologized quickly and tried to help pick up books, but after trying to lift a particularly heavy Philip Pullman novel with the injured wrist, I knew immediately that I was going to need to see a doctor. I pulled out my new cell phone, which survived the crushing fall, and called my mother, who had been cleaning her classroom.

I chose to remain silent in the car, preferring to listen to my mom wonder why I was so accident prone. I didn't even have an answer for myself. It was just one of those things that had always been. The reason why I stopped doing ballet, the reason why I hated gym class. Walking across a flat, stable surface was hard enough, involve running or a ball and I was doomed, as were those around me, usually.

"Our usual family doctor stopped practicing a few months ago, but he did recommend this new one. He's taken over Dr. Meyer's practice and is supposed to be a miracle worker. I saw him last week." Renée pulled into the familiar parking lot of the bright blue doctor's office that I'd acquainted myself with when I was younger. I used to come to Dr. Meyer for most of my injuries, only going, embarrassed, to the emergency room for major broken bones and x-rays. Even though I would be with my mom for only a short time, I usually found one thing to hurt myself on while on my visits. As we got out of the car, I thought aloud.

"Maybe I should call Cat and Michael. Cat was a little scared when I told her about my wrist."

My mother held the door open for me, and glanced at me, amused. "You didn't warn her about how accident prone you were?"

I shrugged and held my wrist close to my chest. It was starting to ache. "I was hopping it would stay behind me in Forks."

"Me too." She sighed. "You were doing so well too. Almost a whole week," she joked. We walked to the familiar receptionist, a short woman with platinum blond hair and bright hazel eyes, named Fran.

"Haven't seen you in a while, Bella," she called in greeting. She greeted my mom also, and the two of them talked about what I'd done this time.

"Let's go, Bells." Renée was halfway to the back, holding the door open for me.

"Already?"

"It's a slow day," commented Fran next to her. She held my folder, which looked unusually thick. She led us to the first exam room and left us there. "The doctor's aid will be in in a moment. I'll let him know you're here."

I sat on the exam table, my legs dangling from the edge. Renée perched herself on the uncomfortable-looking vinyl seat next to the bed. We were both quiet, used to the routine. The only noise was the crinkling of the paper beneath me. "What were you here for last week?" I asked suddenly, remembering the comment Renée'd made earlier. I couldn't remember her getting hurt or anything recently.

"Oh, I wasn't feeling well. I thought it was the flu." She looked flustered, and she began rummaging in her purse for something. She settled for a pack of gum and pulled out a stick. "But I'm fine."

"What is he like?"

"Oh," Renée looked more keen on this topic and sat up in her seat. "He's very nice. Makes sure you understand everything. Very handsome, too."

"Mom..."

But neither of us got another word in because the door to the room opened and the aid came in. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw him.

"You?"

Edward Cullen and I spoke at the same time. While my voice held pure surprise, his surprise was tainted with a tinge of anger. He looked down at his chart, which held my information. His brow furrowed slightly, but smoothed out quickly.

"Well," he said, chuckling a bit, "I guess you have more of a right to be surprised than me. I had your name in front of me the whole time." He shut the door behind him.

"Bella?" Renée said next to me, confused. I had forgotten that she was even in the room and when I looked at her, I saw the look on her face.

"Oh. Mom, Edward is in one of my classes at school." She looked to him for confirmation.

"It's true. Bella and I have Biology together. Study Hall, also." He began taking my pulse and my heart rate as he spoke.

"But that makes you Bella's age, right?"

Edward wrote my numbers on my chart and put the stethoscope to my chest, instructing me to breathe in and out. "Yes. I help out here for my father. Kind of like an intern."

So Dr. Cullen was the one to take over Dr. Meyer's practice. Interesting. I was going to have to try and learn balance and to avoid library pushcarts.

"Let's check your height and weight," suggested Edward. He stepped over to the scale near the door and adjusted it slightly. Grudgingly, I stepped up and held still as he checked my height. "How is the wrist?" he asked, noting how I still held it close.

"Fine," I lied. In truth, it was starting to throb a little and was obviously swollen. He chuckled at my stubbornness.

"I'm almost done with you. Just a few questions and Dr. Cullen will be in."

He quickly took my numbers down and gestured for me to sit. Edward asked the standard questions and I answered them honestly. When he was done, he signed off on the chart and closed it with a flick of the wrist. As he stood and headed for the door, he did something that rocked me in my seat, making me forget momentarily about my throbbing wrist. He smiled genuinely at me.

"I'll be right back with the doctor."

It was quiet for a beat before my mom spoke up.

"Bella, do the two of you get along or not?"

"Why?"

"At first, you seemed to be cautious around each other, like you hated one another. Then you seemed amicable. Then you two seemed really friendly."

I shrugged. "I only met him today, truthfully. He and his siblings started school today."

"Huh."

I thanked the medicine gods the timing Dr. Cullen and Edward had because they chose that moment to come in. Edward, being the last one in, shut the door and kept behind the doctor, observing. I took my eyes off Edward the enigmatic to answer the doctor's question and mumbled my answer. It took all my power to give the answer, too. It seemed as if good genes ran in the family. With a head of blond hair and similar Romanesque features to that of a model, I could see what my mother meant when she'd said he was handsome. I quickly shook off the shock and described what happened to create my injury. I blushed furiously as both Edward and the doctor chuckled.

"I'm a little clumsy," I muttered, glaring at the wall.

"I can tell," said Dr. Cullen, waiving my medical folder, "We may see quite a bit of each other here, huh, Bella?"

"God, I hope not." My mom spoke with me, surprising me. I turned to look at her. "Really, Bella. Let's try not to break bones until Christmas, okay?"

Edward laughed. "No worries. I'll protect her in the two classes we have together." He winked at my mother and grinned at me. I flushed crimson, embarrassed by the sudden attention he was giving me.

The Cullen men finished the exam of my wrist, determining that it wasn't broken or fractured, just twisted. He suggested that I wear the lightweight brace he gave me for two weeks, then come back then for a check up. I agreed to grudgingly. While Renée went with Dr. Cullen to sign some paperwork and fill out insurance info, Edward walked me to the door that led to the lobby. I held my wrist close as he opened the door for me.

"Is it really bothering you that much?"

I turned to look at him, confused. "What's bothering me?"

"Your hand? You told my father that it wasn't too bad, but you were lying, weren't you?" Edward looked pointedly at my cradled hand, frowning.

"It's okay." I shrugged. "I can just take some Advil or something." Edward's frown deepened. "What?"

He said nothing. Instead, he pulled out a white pad and wrote on it quickly. He ripped a the single sheet off and handed it to me, giving me a stern look with it. He held on firmly as he spoke, "Take this to the pharmacy and get them. It's just enough for a few days, but it will help."

I looked down at the prescription and felt the beginning of a frown form on my face. "I don't think I'll need something like Vicodin for my little wrist." I tried to hand the paper back, but because he still held on to it, he made it impossible. It went right back in my palm, pressed firmly by his fingers, which were gentle and warm, but firm.

"Don't be stubborn, Bella," he said exasperatingly. "It's only two a day for five days. You may not even need them all, but at least for today and tomorrow. Please?" He looked down at me, eyes serious.

Something happened then. I had no idea it was going to happen, no clue how to prepare for it. So it happened, and afterward, left me breathless. I melted on the spot, entranced by his grass green eyes. I felt his fingers tighten around mine, closing the paper in my palm, and at the same time, a tingle went from my fingers and traveled all the way to my toes and back. A flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes, causing him to smile crookedly a little. For a moment, I was speechless and I gaped for a moment, searching for a response to this feeling.

Before I could either tell him okay or to let go of my hand or do something stupid like kiss me, Renée came around the corner, causing the two of us to automatically step apart from each other. "Have a good afternoon, you two," Edward said. He smiled at the two of us and hurried around the corner, calling for his father. Renée blinked in surprise at his quick exit, but shrugged it off, telling me of how should get going. I was still rooted in place. Every time I blinked, I saw his face with his marvelous green eyes.


	8. Dangerous Topic

**First Light  
By** _unfailingtwilight  
_**Chapter 7:** Dangerous Topic  
**Dislaimer:** I don't own Twilight or any Twilight-related characters or story plots. Just this particular plot and characters like Cat. They all belong to Stephenie Meyer.

* * *

7. Dangerous Topic

"Are you sure you don't want help, Bella?" Michael asked worriedly. He was walking with Cat and myself to her car and was continuously offering to carry my load of groceries. I politely declined, pointing out that all I carried was a loaf of French bread with my injured wrist and a paper bag filled with vegetables.

"Lay off, Mike." Cat looked behind her as she unlocked the car. "We need to get back to Bella's so we can cook this stuff and eat!" She popped her trunk and loaded her bags in, helping Mike put his away as well. I was last, taking up the last of the already minuscule space in her trunk. As a last minute decision, I decided to hold on to the bread, afraid for its well-being in the melee.

--

After I had come home from the Cullen's office, Renée and I were surprised to see Cat's Camaro sitting in the drive, idling. We'd gotten out of our own car and were barely to hers when I was accosted by her flying at me eagerly.

"Are you okay? What the hell was that?" Worry lined her face as she looked down at me. As my mother walked past us, she laughed.

"Good luck, Bells."

"Uh..." I looked around for a way to escape, only finding Michael grinning as he got out of the car.

"Bella." Cat sounded agitated. I sighed and motioned for us to go in, away from the beating sun.

"Cat," I began, looking down at her as she sat herself on our couch. "I am a klutz. I can barely walk across a stable, flat surface without falling or getting bruised." I looked at her, appraising her reaction. Right then, her face showed boredom.

"Bella." I cringed, thinking she was going to berate me for not warning her. "You're so weird." She cracked a smile.

Next to her, Michael gave her a look. "That's not very nice. Maybe it's a medical problem..."

I shook my head. "Nope. Just clumsy."

"Well, then..." He tried to hold back a grin.

--

It had been a week since the incident and my two friends were still eager to treat me like porcelain. Of the three days I'd hung out with the two of them, they'd kept me in my home, afraid of whatever dangers the outside world could hold. That night, they'd decided to have dinner at my house, and big shocker, go _to _the movies, instead of a rental. We'd been talking for a few minutes when Renée reappeared, holding on to her car keys. She peaked around the corner to the three of us. "Bella, Phil just called my cell. He wants me to come down to the field. Are you okay for dinner?"

I shrugged, "Sure."

"We're gonna make Bella some real Italian and take her out to make her feel better," added Cat. She glanced at Mike, who grinned.

I just frowned, already tired of being the butt of the jokes. Oh, well, I thought to myself, Wait until they see what I'm really capable of. This was nothing compared to the possibilities of broken legs and concussions.

"Oh, well have fun. I should be back around ten or so. I never know with Phil." My mother giggled, which made me and the other two shake our heads. Renée was good at acting like she was our age. We all breathed sighs of relief when we saw her car pull out, glad for her lack of presence. She'd been nearly as suffocating as Cat. Immediately, I went to the kitchen to start on the food before they could deny me the chance to help.

I began chopping onions, glad when Mike immediately went to the sauce ingredients and Cat went to the meat. But my relief was short lived when Cat immediately jumped on the topic of conversation I was avoiding. Edward Cullen.

"So...Bella..." I stayed silent, letting her go on. "Any clue to why he is still cold to you?" There was no need to ask who 'he' was.

"No. Not really. Any idea why he's so cold to you?" I smiled internally, glad I had thought to change around the topic. But no such luck with sharp-minded Cat.

"Nuh-uh. You're his lab partner. Why does he barely want to do the labs with you?"

I grit my teeth, annoyed all over again at Edward Cullen. I had thought after the doctor's office, he'd be a little more receptive to friendly conversation. No such luck. Instead, he was still cold and kept his words clammed up tight. Not that I _wanted _to talk to him, or wanted his attention. I just didn't want to be on bad terms with anyone.

Though, at one point, I had caught him giving me an admiring glance in the hall when I'd told a random girl in my math class off for trying to glance off my paper during a test after class. Poor girl had caught me in a bad mood, but the moment I saw Cullen, I'd looked his way. Immediately, two things happened; the girl took off, and Cullen's smile quickly left his face and was replaced by his trademark neutral frown. Still in a terrible mood, I glared at him and stalked off to Biology, studiously ignoring him as he came to class a minute later. I thanked the school gods that we had a quiz that day instead of a lab. At the end of class, I'd handed in my quiz, and walked passed him. When I looked up at him as we walked out the door, I thought I'd seen sadness in his eyes, but I didn't stop to see, too intent on getting to lunch.

The day after my clumsiness, a Friday, I'd tried to talk to him when I ran into him on the way into the building. At first, he'd seemed happy to see me, but as his family walked past, he lost his crooked smile. He'd broken off our conversation with an abrupt excuse and walked the same path as his brothers and sisters. I had fought the embarrassing urge to cry whenever I was angry and half jogged to Spanish. The whole day I had been surly. Cat, who had never seen me so upset, wisely decided to stay silent as I brooded over my homework in class, my lunch, and my lap on the drive home. That had been the first day I had vowed to stop worrying over Edward Cullen. And that had been the first night I'd had a nightmare of him.

"I don't know what to tell you, Cat. The boy must be bi-polar. No other reason for it. And I think your meat's burning..." I pointed to the pan on the stove, which was smoking a little more than necessary.

"Oh, shit! Mike!"

I smiled, glad for the distraction, but quickly got into the task of making sure my friends didn't burn down my mother's house.


	9. Nightmare

**First Light  
By** _unfailingtwilight  
_**Chapter 8:** Nightmare  
**Dislaimer:** I don't own Twilight or any Twilight-related characters or story plots. Just this particular plot and characters like Cat. They all belong to Stephenie Meyer.

* * *

8. Nightmare

_Quietly, I peeked around the corner, trying to calm my breathing. Behind me, Alice held my hand tight enough to strangle some of the blood flow. Quickly, I turned back around and faced her. I shook my head minutely and nodded towards the door. She nodded and dragged me, thinking I was too stunned to move on my own. Behind us, I could hear the man standing, muttering to himself. And while he thought neither of us could hear him, I could hear every thought in his head, every detail of how he planned to make sure we didn't talk either. Just like our parents..._

_I shoved Alice out the door and breathed a sigh of relief as Emmett took her hand and ran off with her. My heart sped up as the man took a few steps and I quickly turned to reach for the door, hoping he didn't notice we were gone until it was too late. When I grabbed the knob, I saw him in the background, standing at the bottom of the steps. He frowned at the door, but quickly smiled when he saw I was still there._

"_Edward! Don't you want to play my game?"_

_I left the door open and ran._

I woke up, drenched in sweat. I felt glued to my bedspread, whether by the wetness or terror, I wasn't sure. My eyes looked around, searching every inch of the room that I could see from my angle, as I took gulps of air. I closed my eyes again, and willed myself to be calm, counting to one hundred just to be sure my heart would slow down. When I heaved myself up and out of bed, I shuffled to the bathroom across the hall, intent on splashing my face with cold water.

Once I was satisfied the water had fully woken me, I looked fully in the mirror. I looked awful. My eyes were wild, my hair a mess. I gripped the sink, hoping I could get a grip on what I had just dreamed about. Edward and Alice Cullen. More specifically, two Cullens in a house with some sort of madman. Trying to escape from him, Emmett on the outside, taking Alice to safety.

Since when did I dream about anti-social strangers who wanted nothing to do with me? Yet, as I decided it was to close to morning to go back to bed and to just take a shower, worry poked at my brain. Were they okay? Had I just been over-creative with my imagination or was I seeing actual events? And why in the world had I been in Edward's mind during the whole dream? While in the shower, I remembered how, when Alice decided to sit with Cat and myself during Study Hall, she once told me about how, before school, she liked to go the park down the street from there.

"To wake up," she'd said, when I gave her an incredulous look as she told me the time she was usually there: five thirty a.m..

I got out of the shower and dressed quickly, suddenly excited when I saw the clock read five after five. Hopefully she'll be there, I thought, and it will put my mind to rest. I scribbled a note for Renée, telling her I'd left early, I texted Cat and told her I'd see her at school, and I walked to the nearest bus stop.

The bus ride took twenty minutes and by the time I found where little Alice Cullen hung out in the park, it was quarter to six. I spied her sitting on a picnic table, alone, staring up at the blue sky. I thought she was lost in a daydream when I walked up, but surprisingly, she immediately spoke when I got near.

"Nice morning, huh?"

I gaped like a fish for a minute. "Uh...y-yeah. Even if it is Halloween tomorrow." She turned her head to me, smiling.

"I didn't think I would get anyone out here to join me." She patted the spot next to her. "Edward would if he wasn't such a night owl and the others like sleep too much."

I quickly perched on the table and dropped my bag on the bench. "Yeah. Normally I'm just getting up now, but I had a bad night," I explained, watching as Alice pulled a white bakery bag from her messenger pack. She handed it to me with a smile, a look of patience gracing her features.

"Go on," she urged, seeing how reluctant I was. I paused, unsure if she was talking about the muffin she'd handed me or for me to explain why my night was so bad. "What happened?"

"I-I had this _awful _nightmare. It felt like it lasted an eternity..."

"Were you naked in class? First day of school all over again?" she teased, her hazel-green eyes full of playful laughing.

I shook my head, breaking pieces of the muffin off and handing them to her. She nodded thanks and took some, tossing them back. "No. I had a nightmare about someone else...or three people I know, actually. They were trying to run away from this bad guy..."

"Who was it?" Alice asked over a mouthful of blueberry and muffin. I smiled grimly at how funny she looked.

"You and your brothers..." I watched her face as I said it, looking for any sign of ice like Edward. There was nothing but her quirky smile and a raised brow. She urged me to tell her everything, so I told her as much as I could remember. The more I tried to think about it, I found, the more it felt like it was sifted from my head. Like sand through my hands.

"Well," she said when I was done, "You are very creative, Bella. Or, at least, you are in your dreams." Alice smiled, a hint of mischief behind her eyes. "Why were you dreaming about Edward? That's the real question!"

My cheeks flamed and I groaned. "Not you too, Alice! Please! I get enough from Cat!"

Alie chuckled. "Don't worry about it. I won't tease you."

"There's nothing to tease about! I'm just obsessed with why he hates me!" I insisted, standing. I brushed my pants off and picked my bag up from the ground. I waited as Alice did the same, watching her smile grow.

"He doesn't hate you, Bella. He's just frustrated."

"Frustrated? With what?"

Alice just smiled and started walking towards the school. "Let's go! It's past seven thirty!"

"Damn it, Alice! Don't just walk away!" I ran to catch up with her. I'd never pegged her to be so fast, for her stature.

"Sorry," she giggled. "Anyway, you're welcome to come and 'wake up' with me whenever you want. But let's trade off on breakfast, okay?"

I nodded. "Sure. But don't expect me too often. I like sleep too."

Alice nodded in understanding. "Will do. Just don't expect me after tomorrow morning for awhile. Me and my family are going somewhere until the ninth."

I wanted to ask where, but I kept my mouth shut, not wanting to pry. I thought Alice was grateful for my silence as well, since Edward spotted us walking up the entrance together. He didn't look pleased. I skipped a step, almost tripping over my own feet, but Alice was there to catch my hand before I fell. She looked to me with a frown, then to her brother, who was still glaring. To her credit, she glared right back.

"He's so forceful," she muttered to herself. To me, she added, "I'll see you later, Bella. I've got to go hear him yell at me." She winked. "Should be interesting!" I watched her skip up the steps and drag him by the arm into the building.

"That family's giving me whiplash..." I muttered, heading in. Why couldn't the Cullens just be normal like everyone else?


	10. BloodTyping

**First Light**  
by Unfailingtwilight  
Chapter 9: _Blood-Typing_

* * *

_9. Blood-Typing_

"Where were you this morning?" Cat asked, sitting on the edge of my table before Bio. Edward had yet to show, so she felt compelled to spend some quality time with me that she'd missed out on. More and more I was thinking of her less as Angela, but more as an Angela/Jessica hybrid. I couldn't tell if that was a good thing or a bad one. I settled for good as I answered her.

"I wasn't sleeping well, so I got ready early and went to the park. Ran into Alice there."

"Good god. It was that early?" Cat tried to mask the look of horror on her face, but failed.

"Yeah. I had some disturbing nightmares and wanted to shake them off." Cat just shook her head, getting up to leave. I didn't need to look to find out why: Edward was there. She winked and waggled her fingers at me, wishing me fun. I just glared at her.

The bell rang, but the teacher, Ms. Colbert, was still missing. So everyone around our table thought it best to talk. I felt a little awkward, sitting next to Edward, his hate stopping us from talking to each other. Stupid boy, I thought, Why can't you just play nice?

"Bella?"

I jumped, startled out of my insults. I looked over to Edward, who was sitting facing me, his green eyes boring into mine. It had been so long since he'd directly spoken to me, I'd forgotten how velvet soft his voice could be.

"Edward."

"Listen, I'm sorry if I'm being rude. I-I just think, given everything going on, that it's not smart for us to be friends."

"'Not smart'. What's that supposed to mean?" I narrowed my eyes, folding my arms across my chest.

"There's a lot going on...with my family. It's not prudent for me to drag you in it all." He smiled apologetically.

"Alice doesn't seem to have any qualms with being my friend," I said acidly. I watched as his smiled melted and was replaced with something bitter.

"Alice doesn't like following the rules," he answered. His eyes hardened a bit.

I thought a moment. Then, a little less harshly, said, "Maybe, you could be a little less rude." He raised a brow. "You can still follow your rules, whatever. But it would be nice to drop the hostility. Like at the office," I reminded him of how genial he'd been after the initial shock of seeing me at his father's practice.

Edward thought for a moment, running one of his hands through his already disorderly bronze hair. I had this surprising urge to do the same with my hand. How soft would his hair feel? Shocked at where my thoughts were heading, I mentally slapped myself and listened to his answer.

"I think that would be okay." I perked up a bit, but Edward was quick to burst my bubble. "But we still can't be friends."

"What about Alice?" I countered.

Edward didn't get the chance to answer, since Colbert came into the room, carrying an oversized box. A boy named Zak helped her find a place to set it and she used him to demonstrate what the class would be doing. Dread bubbled up in my stomach as I watched her poke his finger. They were ten or twelve feet away...how long until it reached me?

"Blood-typing. Lovely..." Edward muttered, giving me a friendly grin, which he quickly lost when he saw how green I was. "Bella? Are you okay?" I didn't trust myself to open my mouth, so I shook my head slightly. He furrowed his brow, looking between me and the teacher, who was handing out cards and pokers to the class. "Are you going to be sick?" I nodded.

As I nodded, Colbert came to see why Edward and I weren't getting our materials. "What's wrong, Bella?"

"I think she can't handle needles," Edward answered for me, for which I was thankful. More kids began poking their fingers, which made the room spin. He asked her permission to take me to the nurse and she agreed enthusiastically.

Helping me stand, Edward got my arm around his shoulders and put one of his around my waist. I tried not to be a dead weight, but until we got out of the room, that was all I was going to be. Fortunately, this didn't seem to be a problem for him. When we were down the hall, I was able to stand upright. Being away from the source helped, but my head was still swirling around. When I took my arm away from his shoulder, Edward didn't complain, but he didn't see the need to remove his hand on my waist, either. I didn't bother to remind him.

"So no needles or blood, but you can handle a scary book cart tumble?" He glanced down at me, his smile reaching his eyes. For a moment, I was stunned. I hadn't ever really seen him smile, not like this. Just quick grins or ruthless grimaces. I gathered my wits just quick enough to answer.

"I don't care about needles. I just can't handle the smell of blood," I sniffed, pretending to be offended. "And that cart had it coming."

He laughed aloud, steering me into the office. Serena Masen looked up from her computer and smiled as we came in. I must have still looked ill, because her smile quickly transformed into a worried frown. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Bella got sick in Bio. We're blood-typing," he added, seeing her confused look. Serena nodded knowingly.

"Gotcha. Back here, Bella." She got up from her seat and guided us to a back room with a small cot and a medicine cabinet. "You can go back now, Edward."

Edward was shaking his head before she could finish. "I need to stay. Bella gets sicker if someone isn't with her, holding her hand."

My eye twitched. Where had he gotten that from? They both looked to me for confirmation. I was a bit slow on the uptake, which make him squeeze my waist slightly. I nodded quickly. "Yeah. I need company. Or I'll get sicker." I pretended to swoon a bit. Edward rolled his eyes, but Serena laughed.

"Okie dokie. Just thought I'd mention it. Behave, I'll be back in a few minutes." She handed me a cold compress.

"Did you have to swoon?" Edward looked at me as I stepped back from him and sat on the cot. As clear as the air was, I was still a little woozy. And was it my imagination or did he look disappointed when I stepped back?

"Eh. I knew she'd let you stay. We're like this." I twined two fingers together and winked. "Why do you want to stay?" I asked.

He sat next to me and took the compress from my hands. Putting it to my forehead gently, he said, "We need to talk."

* * *

Reviews are muched loved and make me want to write more!

unfailingtwilight


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